Dooriatch



Nov. 6, 1934.

c. E. DATH I 1,979,456

DOORLATCH Filed May 18, 1932 I nvervtor Charles E Bat/L Patented Nov. 6, 1934 PATENT OFFICE DOORLATCH (lharles EDa th, Chicago, 111;, assignor to W. H. Miner, Inc., Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Application May 13, 1932, serialne. 611,948 2C laims. Gian-241v it This invention relates to improvements in door latches especially adapted for doors of refrigerator trucks or cold storage containers used in connection with container cars.

One object of the invention is to provide a latch fora hinged door adapted to either force the door open or tightly close the same, and also look it in closed position, so designed that proper operation is ensured at all times regardless of slight sagging of the doorwith respect to the door frame due to theweight of the door and unavoidable play in the hinge connection.

A me-re specific object of the invention is to provide a latch means for single doors of the hinged type, including a lever operated crank member mountedion the door for rotation about a horizontal axisand having operative engagement with a keeper fixeclto the door frame for forcing thedoor open or tightly closing the same, wherein the keeper is provided with guide means engageable by a portion of the crank member to ensure proper registration of the keeper engaging means and keeper duringoperation of the device in closing the door.

A stillfurther object of the invention is toprovide in adoor latch of the character described in the preceding paragraph means cooperating with the crank member to hold the same against movement to lock the door in closed position.

Other objects of the invention will more clearly appear from the description and claimshereinafter following.

In the drawing, forming a part of this specification, Figure l is a side view of the wall of a container, such. as is used in connection with container cars, the wall being provided with a door opening, which is closed by a single door, said view illustrating my improved operating latch in connection therewith. Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1, on an enlarged scale, certain parts shown in Figure 1 being broken away. Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view, corresponding substantially to the line 33 of Figure 2. And Figure 4 is a vertical sectional view, on an enlarged scale, corresponding substantially to the line 44 of Figure 1.

In said drawing, 10 designates the side wall of a member, such as a container used in connection with container cars for railways, provided with a door opening 11 closed by a single door indicated by 12. The door is of the swinging type and is supported by a pair of hinges 13-13 secured to the wall 10 at one side of the door opening.

My improved door latch comprises broadly a keeper A; a supporting bracket B; a lever operatedkeeperengaging crank member C; and a V lock D.

The keeper A is in the form of a casting having a flazng el l, by which it is fixed to the-wall 10. The casting has an outstanding section 15 provided'with an inclined slot 16, with which the crank member C cooperates. The section 15 is provided with a horizontal ledge or flange 1'7 at the bottom thereof, which is located on the side of thecasting A nearest the door. At the outer end, the ledge 17 is bevelled, as indicated at 18, thus providing an inclined section. As clearly shown inFigure 4, the ledge 17 is located beneath the slot 16 of the keeper. 1

The supporting bracket B comprises a fia platelike section 19, which is secured to the outor side of the door adjacent to the free edge thereof, as clearly shown in Figures 1 and 2. The bracket B isprovided with bearing means 20-20 for thecrank C, said bearing means oomprising a block 21 havingspaced bearing projections 121121disposed inseats 2222 provided by outstanding straplike portions 23-23 on the bracket B. The bearing projections 121121 of the block 21 and the outer sections of the straps 23-23 are provided with opposed curved bearing surfaces, which together form complete cylindrical bearing members. Each strap 23 is provided with a depending stop lug 24, fora purposehereinafter pointed out, The lugs 24-24 are in transverse alignment, as clear- :ly shown in Figures 2 and 3.

The lever operated keeper engaging crank member (3 comprises a crank member proper 25 having a journal portion 26, which is rotatable within'the bearingmeans 20 at the outer side of the bracket B. Formed integral with the crank member 0 is an operating lever 27, which has a bearing trunnion 28 at the outer side thereof in axial alignment with the journal portion 26 of the crank member proper. The operating lever 27 is disposed between the two bearing means 20--20 and has a web 29 adjacent to the inner end thereof, said web being provided with a transverse opening 30, which is so located as to be disposed in back of the lugs 24-24 when the operating lever 27 is in the position shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3.

The lock D, which is employed to hold the crank member against movement when the door is in closed position so as to lock the same, is preferably in the form of a padlock having the hasp thereof engaged through the opening 30 of the web 29 of the lever 27 so as to engage in back of the stop lugs 2424. The portion of the crank which engages within the slot 16 of the keeper is indicated by 31 and is preferably of cylindrical cross section, as shown in Figure 4. The keeper engaging portion 31 of the operating crank C is carried at the outer end of the crank arm 32. The inner end of said crank arm, where it joins the journal portion 26 of the crank C, is in the form of a curved flange 33, which is concentric to the journal portion 26, as clearly shown in Figure 4. The flange 33 forms a guide member, which cooperates with the guide ledge 17 of the keeper A to align the keeper engaging portion 31 of the crank C with the slot 16 of the keeper A during the operation of closing the door.

In forcing the door open, the operation of my improved latch is as follows: The lever 27 is swung outwardly and upwardly from the position shown in Figures 1, 2, and 3, thereby rotating the keeper engaging portion 31 of the crank C in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Figure 4. Rotation of the keeper engaging crank in this direction brings the engaging portion 31 thereof in contact with the rear wall of the slot 16 of the keeper A. Further rotation of the crank C will cam the door outwardly, thereby forcing the same open. The portion 31 of the crank clears the slot 16 of the keeper A when the lever 27 has been raised to the proper height, thereby permitting the attendant to swing the door to fully opened position.

When closing the door, the operating lever 27 is in raised position so that the keeper engaging portion 31 of the crank will be disposed below the entrance to the slot 16 of the keeper A. In swinging the door to closed position, the flange 33 of the crank arm of the crank C engages the inclined section 18 of the ledge 17, thereby bringing the engaging portion 31 of the crank into registration with the open end of the slot 16 of the keeper A. When the parts are thus positioned, the operator swings the lever 2'7 downwardly, thereby rotating the crank member C in a counterclockwise direction, as viewed in Figure 4, thus causing the keeper engaging portion 31 of the crank to enter the slot 16 and engage with the outer wall of the slot to cam the door inwardly and force the same tightly into the door opening. When the door has been tightly closed, the lever 2'7 is in the position shown in Figure 3. As will be evident, the operating crank C may then be locked by engaging the hasp of the padlock D through the opening 30 of the web 29 of the lever.

In heavy door constructions, such as are employed in connection with cold storage containers or refrigerator automobile trucks, it frequently happens that the doors will sag slightly due to unavoidable looseness in the hinge connections thereof, thus preventing proper alignment of the keeper engaging means of the door operator and the slot of the keeper. As will be evident, my improvements overcome this defect by providing positive means for guiding the keeper engaging means so that the same will register with the slot of the keeper. Further, the rigid guide ledge on the keeper, which cooperates with the bearing means on the rotary keeper engaging crank member, which bearing means is concentric with the axis of rotation of the crank member, provides a simple and efiicient mechanism for bringing the keeper engaging member into proper registration with the slot of the keeper.

I have herein shown and described what I now consider the preferred manner of carrying out my invention, but the same is merely illustrative and I contemplate all changes and modifications that come within the scope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. In a door latching mechanism for members having a wall provided with a door opening closed by a single door adapted to swing about a vertical axis, the combination with a slotted keeper fixed to said wall; of an operating member mounted on said door for rotation about a horizontal axis, said member having a keeper engaging portion adapted to engage within the slot of said keeper, said keeper engaging portion being eccentric to the axis of rotation of said member, said member also having a cylindrical bearing portion thereon concentric with the axis of rotation thereof; and a guide flange on said keeper adapted to be engaged by said bearing portion of said member to register the keeper engaging portion thereof with the slot of the keeper.

2. In a door latching mechanism for members having a wall provided with a door opening closed by a single door adapted to swing about a vertical axis, the combination with a slotted keeper fixed to said wall; of an operating member mounted on said door for rotation about a horizontal axis, said member having a keeper engaging portion eccentric to the axis of rotation thereof adapted to engage within the slot of said keeper, said member having an arcuate guide flange thereon concentric with the axis of rotationthereof; and a horizontal guide ledge on said keeper engageable by said guide flange and slidably supporting the same to register the offset eccentric keeper engaging portion of said member with said slot, said guide ledge having an inwardly inclined outer end section.

CHARLES E. DATE. 

